The refugee who came to Shropshire as a teen fleeing conflict and became a beacon of help to others

In 2017, teenage Syrian national Hasan Bajbouj moved to the UK with his mother in search of a new start. Six years on and he’s making a life for himself in Shropshire, having just received a mayor’s award for his work in the community.

At the time, his mother had been shot in the leg and was in need of urgent medical attention, so the pair had no choice but to seek help.

“We have Jordan as a neighbouring country,” Hasan said, “and so volunteers helped us to take her there. They gave free help to her so she stayed at a hospital there for about three days.

“But they didn’t have enough equipment so they said they would take her to Germany where she stayed for three months and 18 days, where she had surgery before sending her back to Jordan.”

Then out of the blue one day, the organisation UNICEF got in touch with Hasan to say that an opportunity had arisen to move them elsewhere – to the rural county of Shropshire.

Hasan, now 23, said: “I was scared when I first got here because of the language barrier – I couldn’t make friends or get work – but we had to start a life and that’s what we were going to do.”

In the six years since, Hasan has been volunteering with Shropshire Supports Refugees and has worked with other refugee families – helping them to settle in to their new lives.

He has been on-hand to help co-coordinate the hub’s youth club, offered his services as a translator and helped an injured refugee to get to the hospital when he’d hurt his leg.

Not only that, but Hasan has also been attending college and acts as a full-time carer for his mother, who struggles with her hearing and sight.

His community work has been recognised with a Mayor of Shrewsbury award, which he was nominated for by staff at Shropshire Supports Refugees.

Hasan said: “I felt really proud, I was proud of what I had done. I have felt really welcome since coming here.”

Hasan went on to say that his Muslim faith spurred him on to volunteer because it teaches the importance of helping others.

But he also said that after losing his father at a young age, his mother worked tirelessly to support him and his sisters, and so now he relishes the opportunity to look after her.

Two of Hasan’s sisters are currently still living in Jordan.

“I want to get all the family here for one meeting and I feel sorry for my sisters in Jordan because they’re not happy and they have been through a lot,” Hasan said.

Hasan has recently achieved his Level 2 Qualification in Plumbing and is now looking to start his career.

Amanda Jones, founder of Shropshire Supports Refugees said: “When we were starting things up we needed people to help us communicate with people who couldn’t speak English, and really to help us explain what we were doing.

“What we found was the WhatsApp group got us so far, but you need people to explain when and where and what we offer.

“Hasan was a bridge between us and the families. He’s offered as much support as he possibly could, to the point where we enrolled him as a volunteer and a member of staff for the youth group.

“If it’s moving donations, sorting donations, helping us communicate with refugees staying in the hotel – Hasan was there as the handy man.

“The other families were heavily relying on him, whether it was for utilities, to help with insurance – things they could’ve come to us for but they wanted to go to Hasan.

“He doesn’t think about it or ask for things, he just does it.”

Hasan thanked the team at Shropshire Supports Refugees for the support they have given him over the years.

The hub, currently based in the Pride Hill Shopping Centre in Shrewsbury, offers a diverse timetable of activities, as well as English classes, quiet spaces, access to mental health support and more.

The aim of the hub is to bring people together and create a sense of belonging for refugees and migrants, wherever they have come from.

To find out more about Shropshire Supports Refugees and the work they do, visit shropshiresupportsrefugees.org or request to join the closed Facebook group.